Little faith in Obamacare among under-30s

Marie SzaniszloThursday, December 05, 2013

A majority of the nation’s 18- to 29-year-olds believe costs will rise and quality of care will fall under President Obama’s health care reform law, and fewer than three in 10 who are uninsured say they will enroll in coverage through an exchange if and when they are eligible, according to a new national poll by Harvard’s Institute of Politics.

The Internet survey of 2,089 millennials found that a majority disapprove of the law, regardless of whether it is referred to as the Affordable Care Act (56 percent) or Obamacare (57 percent).

By a margin of more than 2 to 1, those surveyed believe that the quality of their care will get worse under the health reform law. And between 50 percent (when the ACA is used) and 51 percent (when Obamacare is used) believe the cost of care will increase.

“I wasn’t surprised that opinions were negative, but I was surprised at the depth of the negativity, especially when you step back and say this is the demographic that helped get (Obama) elected, and this law is his signature policy achievement,” said Trey Grayson, the institute’s director. “The administration is going to have to do a better job at selling this.”

Among the 22 percent of millennials polled who do not have health insurance, 29 percent say they will enroll in the program described as Obamacare, and 25 percent say the same of the ACA.

Fifty-two percent of those surveyed would recall all members of Congress if it were possible, and 47 percent would recall President Obama.